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Chapter 6: Promise

A few weeks passed and Julie hadn't heard from Charlie. She couldn't believe that he was being so petulant! Especially after he promised her that this wouldn't happen.

"Mommy," Tyler said, looking up from the floor where he was coloring. "Why doesn't Charlie come over anymore? I liked when he came over." She looked at him. "Are you not friends anymore?"

"No," Julie said, "we're still friends. He's just been busy, moving into his new house and everything." Tyler frowned.

"Does he not like us anymore?" Tyler asked.

"Ty," Julie said. "Charlie is still my friend and he still likes you, I promise. He's just caught up in some things." She kissed him on the forehead. "Go wash your hands for dinner." She walked over to the stove and strained the pasta she'd just made. She wiped her eyes softly. This was why she went so long, why she didn't bring people into Tyler's life. Didn't Charlie understand that now that he'd gotten himself involved he wasn't just walking away from her, as much as that hurt? The phone rang.

"Hello?" She picked it up.

"Hi," Charlie said on the other end. "It's me."

"I know," she said. "What's up?"

"I'm sorry," he said, "after that morning, I got a little freaked out, and I was upset." She sighed. "You were right though."

"I'm always right," she said. He laughed. "We've missed you around here."

"Yeah, I've missed you guys," he said. "What are you and Ty up to tonight? I'm finally all settled in, I'd like you to see the place."

"Charlie, I don't know," she said. "If things are weird, we should probably just," she looked at the floor. "You bailed on me, and I couldn't deal with that again."

"I know," he said, "but I promise things won't get weird again." She sighed.

"I already made dinner," she said.

"The spaghetti and Prego will keep Jules," he teased. She frowned. "I ordered Chinese and there's way too much."

"Fine," she said. "Tyler," he popped his head out of the bathroom. "Get your coat we're going for a drive."

"Just you live here?" Tyler said walking around Charlie's new apartment. Julie smiled.

"Yeah," Charlie said. "What do you think?"

"It's too big for just you," Tyler said. "I think that Mommy and I should live here and you can go live at our place."

"Tyler!" Julie said. He looked at her. "You can't say things like that!"

"But it is too big," Tyler said. "It's not even like Daddy and Dawn's house cause I'm there sometimes and when they have a baby there'll be four of us there."

"Well, hopefully it won't always be just me," Charlie said and looked at Julie. She looked down. "Want to see something really cool?" He took a remote and pressed it and a flat screen TV came out of a table in the front of the room.

"Whoa!" Tyler said. "Mom, did you see that?"

"I did," Julie smiled. "Maybe Charlie would let you watch a movie?"

"Can I?" Tyler said.

"Sure thing man," Charlie nodded. "Go to town." He opened a large cabinet full of DVDs. Tyler's eyes got wide as he went over and looked at them. "Julie, help me with the food."

"Sure," she nodded and they walked into the kitchen. "The place is great Charlie."

"The kid's right," he shrugged. "It's too big for just me." She looked at him. "You hate that apartment Julie."

"I'm not moving in with you," she shook her head. He looked at her. "I haven't heard from you in six weeks. How do you think this would work?"

"There are three bedrooms," he shrugged. "I wouldn't expect anything from you Jules." She sighed. "It could be good. We'd be a sitcom." She laughed.

"I'll think about it," she said. "But what happens when you decide you can't take being around us with nothing happening?" He looked at her.

"That wouldn't happen," he said. She looked at him. "I'm serious. I care about you and you said it yourself, Ty's getting too old for you two to share a room." She looked down. "It wouldn't have to be permanent. You wouldn't have to pay rent, and this way you could save some money and get a bigger place of your own."

"I'm definitely not moving in here for free!" She said horrified. "I'd pay you rent."

"How about just utilities?" He tried. "I bought the place, so there's really no reason for you to pay rent."

"How much would that be?" She sighed.

"Well," he shrugged, "I guess if you paid half, it would come to about a thousand a month." She bit her lip. That was half of what she was paying now. And Charlie's place was still in their school district, so Tyler wouldn't have to change schools. The neighborhood was better, the place was much nicer and Charlie would be around. Tyler would have a day to day father figure, and one he adored as much as Charlie.

"OK," she nodded. "We move in here. But there are a few things." He nodded. "This changes nothing between you and me."

"We made that clear," he nodded.

"And I don't want you interfering with things with Tyler," she said softly. He looked at her. "I know you care about him. OK? I get that, but you're not his father, or his step father. It's none of your business how I'm raising him."

"OK," he nodded. "I understand."

"No!" Tyler screamed the next day when Julie told him about the plan.

"What do you mean?" Julie said. "I thought you wanted to move, and have your own room."

"But I thought we were going to move into the big apartment upstairs," he said. Julie looked at him. "I like it here. Sean's here and my friends and,"

"Sweetie, you'll still go to your school and everything," she said.

"But if we move in with Charlie," Tyler said, "then won't you two," he stopped, he was starting to cry, and he didn't want to. "you'll marry him and you'll go away." She looked at him.

"Tyler, what on earth and you talking about?" She asked.

"You'll go away," he said, "like Daddy did when he married Dawn." Julie sighed.

"Oh sweetie," she hugged him. "No, it's not like that at all! Charlie and I are not getting married, he's just helping us out, so maybe someday we can get a house with a yard and everything." Tyler looked at her and wiped his nose with his sleeve. "And even if someday I do get married it won't be like when Daddy did. You'll stay with me, and I'll stay with you. Always, I promise." She held him tightly.

"You promise?" He said.

"Absolutely." Julie whispered. "And it's all still a maybe, alright." He nodded, his face still buried in her stomach. She did still want to run this by Scooter, not that he had much of a vote.

"You what?" Scooter said, sitting in a coffee shop with Julie, after she'd told him.

"You heard me," she said, stirring her tea.

"I'm making sure I heard you right," he raised his eyebrows. "Six weeks ago he was a friend, and now you're moving in with him."

"It's not permanent," she said. "Just until I save some money."

"So Charlie Conway gets to help you with money for our son?" Scooter said.

"Scott," she looked at him. "It's not like that! I'm paying him rent, it's just less than I'd pay for an apartment, so I can save a little."

"If you want to move, I can help you," he said. "God, how many times have you offered to help you? And you always say no."

"If that help, came in regularly scheduled child support," she shrugged. "I'd take it. But you've never offered me that! Dawn won't let you offer me that and I won't take money from you in an envelope so that your wife won't know."

"I think once the baby comes she'll get it, Jules," he said softly. She shook her head. "I'm serious."

"OK," she nodded. "We'll see. But for now this is what I have to do. Are totally freaked out by it?"

"Have you slept with him?" He asked. She looked at him. "I'm asking for Tyler's sake, because if this goes south, you know how much it could hurt him."

"Yes," she nodded. "I slept with him once. We aren't sleeping together, and it won't happen again."

"OK," he nodded. "Yeah, I'm OK with it. I don't get it," she laughed. "But I'm OK with it. I haven't seen you this happy in a while."

"Well, this does have the added bonus of free babysitting," she said.

"You had that at your apartment," he said. "And Sean's gay." Julie laughed.

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